Flexible shoe.



J. W. SMITH.

FLEXIBLE SHOE.

APPLICATION FILED 1330.19, 1910.

' Patented Dec. 26, 1911.

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JOHN W. SMITH, OF DERBY, NEW HAMPSHIRE.

FLEXIBLE SHOE.

Application filed December 19, 1910.

Specification of Letters Patent.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JOHN W. SMITH, a citizen of the United States, residing at Derry, in the county of Rockingham and State of New Hampshire, have invented an Improvement in Flexible Shoes, of which the following description, in connection with the accompanying drawings, is a specification, like letters on the drawings representing like parts.

An important requisite of shoe manufacture is that the sole of the shoe should flex readily at the ball of the foot, and to attain this end the innersole must be of a character to yield freely to the movements of the foot, both of itself and in its relation to the other shoe parts. It has heretofore been necessary in order to secure properly flexible innersoles to use high grade and expensive stock, and even then the results have not been all that could be desired.

My invention primarily relates to a Mo- Kay shoe, having for its object the provision of a McKay shoe whose bottom construction shall have the extreme flexibility which has heretofore been more characteristic of welt and turn shoes, and in fact it is my aim to produce a McKay shoe having greater flexibility than is commonly found in even welt shoes. To this end I afford provision for permitting a relative flexing and yielding between the outersole and the innersole, so that the shoe is rendered exceptionally pliable at the ball and therefore easy to the foot. In the preferred embodiment of my invention this feature resides in forming holes in the innersole along the line of stitches which secure the ,outersole to the vamp or upper and innersole so that, although the stitches hold the parts together firmly the same as before, a relative freedom of movement between the parts is permitted by reason of said holes being larger than the stitching wherever the stitches pass through said holes. Incidentally this construction permits the use of a cheaper material for the innersole.

A further feature of the invention, in its commonly break or are sheared ofl" by the flexing movement of the shoe in walking. These points are at the ball and at the front portion of the shank. By securing the innersole to the vamp or upper by lines of stitches at these points previous to applying the outersole, the result is that when the shoe is finished, the innersole and vamp or upper are held snug and tight wholly independently of the outersole stitches. This facilitates the manufacture of the shoe, im-

proves its durability, and cooperates to the best advantage with my special construction for rendering the shoe flexible.

The invention will be understood from the following description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, wherein a preferred embodiment of the invention is illustrated.

Figure 1 is a plan view of the improved innersole, the shoe upper being removed; Fig. 2 is a vertical section on line 22 Fig. l; and Fig. 3 is a bottom plan view of an in nersole with an upper stitched thereto.

The innersole 1 of usual form has a series of holes 2 formed along the sides thereof at the stitching line, and spaced apart about the distance of the usual stitches which are to unite it to the upper and to the outersole, it being desirable for perfect flexibility that the spacing apart of the holes be approximately such as to receive portions of contiguous stitches as shown. These holes are of a size considerably larger than necessary to receive the thread 3, so that the stitches dropped therethrough may have some little play therein, as clearly illustrated in Fig. 2. This stitching, shown as the lock stitch of the McKay shoe, is produced in the usual manner of the McKay system, by sewing through and through the innersole, the vamp 4 and the outersole 5, as shown in Fig. 2, but the loops 6 which secure the innersole, instead of binding the same rigidly to the other parts, have some little play in the enlarged holes 2 through which the stitching is dropped, so that the innersole may, have a yield relative to the outersole, thus enabling the shoe to bend readily. Preferably in connection with this chief feature of my invention I employ also a further feature, which cooperates therewith to best advantage and promotes the flexibility and durability of the shoe, which will now be described.

To promote the flexibility of the innersole, gashes 7 are cut across the bottom" In place of the usual tacks employed for securing the upper to the innersole, 1n the practice of my invention I provide separate stitching 9 extending along adjacent the sides of the innersole and usually nearly in line with the main outersole stitching, to unite these parts along the ball of the foot and the front portion of the shank, as shown. The usual tacks 10 may be employed at the toe since there is no consider able flexing necessary at this point.

Since it is the innersole primarily which keeps the shoe in shape and holds the parts in proper relation, it is important that this be not weakened unnecessarily. I therefore form the holes into which the stitching is to be dropped only of a sufficient size to permit a single stitch to be dropped therein, and to allow the requisite play; further the line of enlarged holes is spaced away from theperiphery of the innersole some little distance so as to leave a considerable rim of solid stock which obviates any tendency to distortion of the peripheral contour- As shown, the enlarged holes 2 are formed along the ball of the foot for a considerable distance, to fully cover the area of normal bending, but in its broader aspect the in vention contemplates the provision of'these holes only at the point of maximum bend, that is, directly under the ball of the foot, or in a limited area adjacent this point, and certain of the claims cover this .form. In practice, these holes may be spaced apart so that only a part of the stitches will coincide therewith so as to drop thereinto, and others may come at a side of the holes, as shown at 8, the essential point being that enough of the stitches are dropped into opposite holes so that the described relative yield between the innersole and the outer sole and vamp can take place, a stitch being supported in part by the innersole and in part by the leather to which the innersole is attached, and the hole being sufiiciently large to permit a knuckling action or slipping movement of one layer of leather on the other without tending to shear off the thread. For example, in Fig. 2 it will be apparent that, as the holes are larger than the thread-strand therein but yet not so large but that a stitch-loop must embrace a part of the innersole, the stitch has a movable bearing with relation to the hole at the point where the thread enters the subjacent leather of the shoe bottom, thereby permitting and facilitating a freedom of longitudinal slipping movement of one layer of leather with relation to the other which Wouldnot be possible'if the thread in pass' ing transversely through each layer had a snug fit in each. The sole-bending action of walking always gives an impulse to one layer to slip or slide longitudinally on the other, especially at the ball of the shoe-bottom, which impulse is prevented by the ordinary through and through stitching, in which the thread fills the needle holes or awl holes, the latter being the only holes provided for the thread. In other words, the stitching ties the two layers of leather iinmovably together so that each stiffens the other, because no such slipping movement or tendency can take place, and my invention arises from the discovery that by making the stitch occupying holes of the innersole larger than the thread therein a freedom of flexing or slipping action is made possible without looseness of union. 7

I believe that it is broadly new to provide enlarged holes along the stitching line in innersoles in a shoe and I also believe the combination therewith of lines of stitching to secure the upper to the innersole to be new.

Having described my invention, what I claim as new anddesire to secure by Letters Patent is,

1. A flexible bottomed shoe, having its innersole and subjacent layer of the shoe bottom united by throughand-through stitches adjacent the ball of the shoe, the material of the innersole surrounding the stitch threads therethrough being provided with enlarged holes for the said threads which extend lengthwise through said holes.

2. A flexible bottomed shoe, having its innersole and adj acent shoe part layer united by through-and-through stitches along the ball of the shoe, the innersole being provided with enlarged holes along the stitching lines, and the said threads being looped therethrough and drawn to embrace parts ofthe innersole and firmly hold the adjacent shoe part thereto, while permitting a relative flexing or slipping of such shoe part.

3. A flexible bottomed shoe, comprising in combination an outer sole, a vamp, an innersole, and stitching ior securing them together, said innersole having enlarged apertures along the stitching lines and said stitching being looped through said apertures to embrace the parts of the innersole between the stitches and to firmly grip the other shoe parts thereto, while permitting free relative flexing or slipping action of the shoe parts. I

4:. A flexible bottomed shoe, comprising an innersole having holes on the stitching lines at the ball portion larger than normal stitching with gashes extending transversely across the innersole in line with said holes and a subjacent shoe part united to said innersole by through and through stitching, said stitching being looped through said holes and embracing parts of the innersole therebetween and firmly holding the subjacent shoe parts thereto, while permitting free relative flexing or slipping action.

5. A flexible bottomed shoe, comprising an innersole, an upper, and stitching extending adjacent the periphery of the innersole and passing straight through the innersole and upper, said stitching and the holes therefor being formed to permit free relative slipping or flexing action between the parts and said stitching securing said parts together separately and as a distinct operation from the outer sole sewing.

6. A flexible bottomed shoe, comprising an innersole, an upper, through-andthrough stitching for securing said parts together, an outer sole, and separate through-and-through stitching for secur-' ing the outer sole to the other shoe parts,

said last named stitching being looped through enlarged apertures in the innersole and gripping the other shoe parts thereto while permitting relative flexibility.

7. The combination with an innersole having holes formed on the stitching line at the ball portion larger than normal stitching, said holes being spaced away from the innersole periphery, an upper, an outersole, stitching for securing said parts together dropped through said innersole holes, and separate stitching extending adjacent the sides of the innersole and passing therethrough for securing the upper to the innersole.

In testimony whereof, I have signed my name to this specification, in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

JOHN W. SMITH.

Witnesses:

M. J. SPALDING, GEO. H. MAXWELL.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. 

